Breakdown of Ich schreibe heute eine Bewerbung.
ich
I
heute
today
schreiben
to write
die Bewerbung
the job application
Questions & Answers about Ich schreibe heute eine Bewerbung.
The translation says "I am writing", but the German just uses schreibe. Why isn't there an "-ing" verb form?
German does not have a continuous "-ing" tense (present progressive) like English does. You never use "bin schreiben"! You just use the regular present tense verb, schreibe. Context tells the listener whether you mean "I write" in general or "I am writing" right now.
Why does heute come before eine Bewerbung? Could I say "Ich schreibe eine Bewerbung heute"?
Putting heute at the end sounds unnatural in German. Adverbs of time (like heute) usually come very early in the sentence, right after the conjugated verb. They almost always come before a noun object like eine Bewerbung.
Can I use Bewerbung to talk about a software application or a phone app?
No, Bewerbung specifically means a formal application for a job, a scholarship, or a spot at a university. For software applications, you would use die Anwendung or simply die App.
Why is it eine Bewerbung here instead of einer or einen?
Bewerbung is the direct object of the sentence (the thing you are writing), so it takes the accusative case. Because all German nouns ending in -ung are feminine, the correct accusative indefinite article is eine.